Meeting with the Home Inspector

There’s nothing like the feeling of soul crushing debt.

Actually, it’s not that bad. Especially when there’s a darn good reason for it. In my case, it’s because the last formality of the conditions has been cleared, and the sale is now final. (Yes, I could still technically back out, but it would cost me $10,000, which I’m not ready to fork out.)

This morning, Chris and I hiked over to what will soon be our new address so I could meet with the home inspector (Don) and go over the results of his findings. This is the first time I’ve ever met with a home inspector — or even known a home inspector — and I have to say that this is one job I’m not sure that I would want.

Don has to know everything about a house — what goes into its construction (and that covers all existing homes, new and old), what goes on inside it (heating and cooling systems, water delivery, electrical, etc.), and what could potentially bring it down. This means that there is a huge amount of information that he has to know.

And a lot he had to tell me.

Don’t think that the house is a lemon — it isn’t. Not by a long shot, especially for its age. There were a few things that I need to do, and preferably soon. One is the roof — apparently some of the shingles are in need of replacement. This is something that will have to wait a year — I certainly can’t afford it now. Another is the eavestroughs — they should be replaced, and the downspouts moved away from the house. (There’s some slight water damage in the southeast foundation corner that needs patching as a result.)

Beyond that, the rest is functional (or cosmetic) maintenance, and nothing I can’t take care of regularly. This was what I expected. This is a used home — people have lived in it before me, so it’s not going to be perfect. But considering the condition that it’s in, and it’s location, I think I got a real bargain on it.

Given, it’s not huge — it’s only two bedrooms — but it’s a roof, a sanctuary, and it’s mine. No more rent (just mortgage payments), no more elevators (just a flight of stairs), no more showers that change temperature every five seconds (just have to make sure to not run out of hot water), no more trying to find a parking spot in the building (but the garage does need a bit of work), no more listening to CP trains or emergency vehicles echoing around (not sure what we’ll have where we are, if anything) … it’s not paradise, but I’m really looking forward to it.

So this is one less thing I get to babble about now. Considering I was at this for only a month, I’m almost surprised at how fast this all came together. In fact, I feel so lucky, I should go buy a lottery ticket.

Now you just get to hear about all the stuff that goes along with *owning* a home.